Driver Trett Digest Issue 22 October 2021 - Flipbook - Page 21
DIGEST | ISSUE 22
There are many reasons why translation has become an
important aspect of industry and commerce, including in the
construction industry, and particularly in the Middle East.
Whilst many documents are produced in English due to the
global nature of the construction industry and its tendency
to rely heavily on the use of English, Arabic is the official
language for many countries in the region, and therefore,
if these documents are required to be submitted to
government entities such as ministries or courts, Arabic
translation is required - which usually prevails over the
original text.
The level of interaction between international and local
companies when it comes to negotiation of business
transactions, partnerships or sponsorship agreements,
also drives the need to exchange written documents in two,
or sometimes more, languages. Unless the translations
precisely capture the meaning and the true intention of the
text in its proper technical context, miscommunications and
misunderstandings can arise, which could end up resulting
in a dispute.
In recent years, Driver Trett has provided technical
translation services to many of its clients in the
State of Kuwait, and in the wider region. Our
services usually involve the translation of our
deliverables from English to Arabic and the
presentation of the same to their clients and/or
to expert panels, and the like, in local courts, or
other third-party tribunals.
In doing this kind of work, it is paramount to consider two
key aspects: the technical subject knowledge required, and
the language and translation knowledge required. From
the technical side, one of the key advantages we have at
Driver Trett, is that translations are carried out by native
Arabic speakers, who have the technical knowledge and
qualifications to translate technical reports and documents,
in the right context.
It is not uncommon for the consultant who prepares the
report in the first place to be the same consultant who carries
out the Arabic translation of that same report. This therefore
helps ensure that the Arabic translation reflects accurately
the meaning of the technical terms and terminology that
has been used in the English text without compromising
the quality of the information presented in the translated
documents. Recently, we were appointed to represent a
leading international contractor operating in the energy
sector in the State of Kuwait in front of a panel of experts in
the local courts, where the official language was Arabic. For
this commission, Driver Trett not only produced a rebuttal
and counterclaim for use by its client in the proceedings,
but also translated these documents into Arabic and further
provided one of its native Arabic speaking consultants
to attend the hearings and simultaneously interpret and
interact with the discussions between the experts and the
parties’ representatives.
As many languages have different origins and characteristics
there is sometimes a risk that the quality of translation could
easily be compromised. For example, the terms ‘quantum
meruit’ and ‘ad hoc’ which are terms widely used in the
field of dispute resolution, are Latin-based terminologies
which have no equivalent in the Arabic language. For that
reason, it is necessary that a translation should capture the
proper meaning of any specific terms and incorporate them
in the right and appropriate context. This of course would
be difficult if the translator did not have the appropriate
technical background to understand such terms.
Depending on the circumstances and the nature of the
commission, we adopt different approaches and techniques
to translate documents. For some documents, albeit an
approach not frequently used, we focus on the word-for-word
technique where each word in the original text is translated
using the most common meaning and keeping the word order
of the main document.
There are also instances where we follow the literal
translation of the text, i.e. where each word is translated
independently using the most common meaning in its context
and then reordered to follow the grammatic structure of the
Arabic language.
To deliver the precise meaning it may be appropriate to focus
and translate the overall text without considering the
meaning of each word separately. In a recent commission
involving a dispute between an international and local
contractor in the State of Kuwait, which the parties decided
to refer to the local courts, Driver Trett was instructed to
review a document that had been translated by a generic
translation agency, before submitting it to the court. During
our review we focused on, among other things, identifying
the technical terms that were incorrectly interpreted from
the original text. One of these terms was “unjust enrichment”
or in Arabic “ ”اإلثراء بال سببwhich the translator, who was not
familiar with the meaning of the term, had translated to the
Arabic word equivalent to “Graft”.
This term if submitted to the court as it had originally been
translated, might have had a serious consequence on the
outcome of the case.
In conclusion, translation of technical documents is not
always the straightforward process that some might consider
it to be. It requires certain skills and technical experience as
well as knowledge of both the languages to produce a welltranslated technical document. The choice of the translation
approach and technique depend on the circumstances and
the nature of the document. However, the ultimate objective
of a technical translation is to communicate accurately
the thoughts and sentiments of the document beyond the
mere literal meaning of the original text, when that text is
translated.
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